Noble Lords Defend the Nation's Gate!

Black Zone, Alliance!

Unexpectedly, after going around in circles, we ended up back at the covenant made by our ancestors and the Emperor before the Golden Throne in Imperial Palace of Terra.

Furthermore, considering what Elder Horn said—that the previous patriarch disappeared because he went to the Black Zone to search for a lost treasure of the Valshius Family related to the Men of Gold —could it be that the so-called alliance is for them to retrieve that item?

No, no, no... that item was lost. That is to say, it was once in the possession of the Valshius Family, but was later lost; hence, it was "lost."

Perhaps only by finding that item can we learn the contents of the "covenant"?

Alvin became increasingly chaotic, a jumble of ideas swirling within him.

Alvin, who thought he would get an answer, was surprised to find that his doubts only increased after asking. Unable to get an answer from Dante, he turned his attention to Penny.

He scooped up the bewildered Penny, ruffled her dry, yellow hair, and asked affectionately, "Penny,"

What exactly did you say to Dante? Can you tell your brother?

"Um?"

Penny stared at him blankly, her two big, dark eyes filled with confusion.

..."

From that expression, Alvin knew it was hopeless, and couldn't help but curse inwardly.

Damn Yellow Skin, why did you have to be a riddle man of all things? Get out of Gotham!

Having completely given up hope, Alvin was too lazy to delve any further. That's just his personality; he couldn't figure it out anyway, so he might as well save his brain cells.

Short-distance Warp travel is fast; they returned to the Stygian System in just half a day.

The first stop chosen was naturally the galactic capital, the civilized world of "Higanbana," with a population of tens of billions, a well-developed industrial base, and abundant resources.

The Planetary General here, Dresster, had spoken with him before and was fully aware of Alvin's arrival and his mission.

"Thank you very much, Count Alvin." Dresster's face showed a hint of gratitude, after all, if it weren't for Alvin, this civilized world would probably have faced destruction.

Incidentally, after the Nachmund Campaign, the Commander of the Calgar Chapter Master formally proposed to the High Lords of Terra that Alvin be granted a title of nobility, which led to this scene where Alvin, who had not yet officially inherited the dynasty, already possessed the title of "Second Class Count".

"Excuse my bluntness, but have you figured out how to deal with these nobles?" Dresster expressed his concern, after all, the nobles who had been entrenched here for many years had become like a boil over the Imperium, difficult to eradicate.

Even he suffered a lot when he first arrived, being secretly sabotaged by those nobles, which naturally made him resentful.

"Don't worry, Your Excellency General." Alvin patted his shoulder with a smile, "To be honest,

What I'm best at is persuading people.

Persuade someone?

Dresster shook his head with a wry smile, but dared not say anything more. He could only hope that by using the name of the Lord of Baal and the Blood Lord, those nobles wouldn't interfere too much with the relocation plan.

If we had to pinpoint the most difficult part of this migration plan, it wouldn't have been the Tyranid Swarm, but rather persuading these nobles to abandon their valuable assets and leave the planet.

Soon, at Alvin's behest, the noble council of the Higanbana was officially convened.

In this civilized world, there are hundreds of thousands of nobles, but only a few hundred are qualified to enter here to discuss matters. Even so, these few hundred high-ranking Noble Lords who control various resources related to the Higanbana are a force to be reckoned with.

"The reason I've gathered you all here today is for one thing, which I'm sure some of you already know: to relocate the assets and population of the Higanbana," Alvin said with a smile, looking at everyone.

"We already know about this." One of the Noble Lords, a fat, pale-skinned man who looked utterly repulsive, swaggered around with his enormous belly and declared arrogantly, "Of course we'll be the first to leave! And my Garden of Nurgle too—it must all be moved! Those are all my favorite flowers!"

"That's right, that's right, and all our property must be moved out."

The nobles below were discussing what to move, talking amongst themselves. They thought of the Garden of Nurgle, the trees they had planted, and even every single paving stone, but not one of them mentioned the commoners.

Very good. Watching this scene, Alvin's last bit of guilt completely disappeared.

He had absolutely no need to consider these beasts.

Knock knock knock!

Alvin tapped the armrest to signal them to calm down, then smiled and said, "Gentlemen, when did I ever say you were the first to evacuate?"

The nobles were stunned by his words. Many of them turned pale and jumped out, pointing their fingers at him and shouting, "Do you know what you're saying? We are nobles of the Imperium! If we're not allowed to be among the first to evacuate, are you expecting those damned soldiers to leave?!"

Alvin's face immediately darkened, his eyes turning cold. "I don't like being pointed at; it's very impolite, and I—I hate impolite people the most!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Tucker darted forward, swung his sword, and struck the nobleman who was pointing at him.

The entire arm was chopped off!

"Ahhh-."

The nobleman clutched his severed arm, screaming in agony, his face filled with terror. "You, you actually allowed your guards to attack me?!"

This is a crime! Guards, kill him right now!

Unfortunately, as soon as the man uttered those words, just as the guards brought by the nobles in the conference hall were about to make their move, a member of the Blood Guard, clad in golden armor, drew his Chainsword and killed the noble!

"Alvin Valshius, by the command of the Lord of Baal, the Blood Lord, is to carry out the transfer mission."

Anyone who dares to threaten will be considered a traitor and executed!

The chilling voices and icy masks of the Blood Guard sent shivers down the spines of the nobles.

This is the Blood Lord, Dante's Blood Guard. If he himself were here, who would dare to act recklessly? You'd be asking for trouble!

The fourteen Blood Guard, like towering walls, exuded a terrifying aura, instantly silencing the nobles in the entire conference hall from their boastful remarks.

Because they knew very well that Imperium laws and noble status could not control these Blood Guards.

There's no way they'd back down an inch; they're truly capable of killing!

"Very good, it seems you have all learned the good habit of listening attentively when others are speaking."

Alvin sat in his chair, chin resting on his hand, a broad smile on his face, yet amidst the horrified gazes of the nobles, he uttered words that sounded like those of a Daemon: "Since you are all nobles, enjoying the Imperium's offerings for generations, shouldn't you now, in this time of crisis for Imperium, make a contribution to it?"

What... what do you want us to do?

A nobleman swallowed hard, looked at Alvin's disgusted gaze, felt a bad feeling welling up inside him, and asked tremblingly.

"It's simple. I urge you, nobles, to die for the Imperium." Alvin smiled slightly. "The front lines are still short of manpower. It's time to put to use the wealth and military equipment you've accumulated over the years."

This will conveniently buy us time to relocate our population and resources.

Having said that, his eyes turned icy cold. He seemed to be smiling, but it sent a chill down the spines of the nobles present. "Nobles guarding the nation's gates—isn't this the noble virtue that the nobles of our Imperium of Man, who have inherited the will of Holy Terra, should display?"